Emergence
by glass sugar2.0
Summary: New students and fresh starts commence out heroes' third year at Sky High. Visions and time travel and horniness. Oh my!
1. Chapter 1

**Emergence**

_a Sky High Fanfic by Wandering Xanthe_

**Chapter 1: Just Act Natural**

**Went to school and I was very nervous**

**No one knew me**

**No one knew me**

**Hello teacher tell me whats my lesson**

**Look right through me**

**Look right through me**

**_Gary Jules, "Mad World"_**

* * *

Just act natural…

That was what Principle Powers had prescribed for the first day of school.

It was almost a blur, the hearing, the decision…

"Reformed…benefit of a doubt…nose clean…"

No rule breaking. No canceling parole meetings. No consorting with super villains.

_Riiight._

3 o'clock found one Lash Sandvig outside of Sky High's library, a veritable trove of knowledge— scientific, paranormal, and otherwise. At the moment, it was the site of his first conference with his, for lack of a better term, parole officer. That was what his presence was after all, a conditional period of freedom. And it was up to a student counsel member, academic honoree, and all around white hat to decide if he deserved it.

Swell.

The library was empty, save for a few students among the stacks and one at the central desk.

Sitting down at the nearest table, Lash let out a sigh, ignoring the few speculative glances from his peers (or at least those brave enough to take their noses out of their book) in favor of staring at the lone figure at the central desk. He watched the librarian's assistant putter around a bit, noting her unfamiliarity.

"You're new, right?"

She looked up then, a startled look in her wide, brown eyes. Her hands, so previously animated, stilled, an anthology of Tennyson poems between them.

She was pretty. Very pretty, in fact. Slightly tan skin, dark auburn hair…He found her slightly parted lips, and the shy tongue edging out to wet them particularly endearing. Adorable even…

She blinked, once, then looked down.

"Sorry," she murmured.

When she looked back up at him, a slight smile hiding the smallest flicker of unease in her eyes…her eyes, which were suddenly less enchanting. Her outfit, a fitted black screen tee featuring the Gorillaz's _Demon Days_ album cover over what he could only assume would be jeans, was a little less fetching. She was still pretty. Still adorable. Only now, he remembered how he'd felt about adorable things…

"You're waiting?"

It took a few seconds for her words to register. Brushing his momentary confusion aside, Lash quirked a smile of his own.

"Yeah," he drawled. "For the first of, I'm sure, many blissfully agonizing parole meetings."

Her eyes widened again, just a fraction in surprise. Didn't she know?

"You're new." It wasn't a question. He'd just noticed her name tag, "Lydia" scrawled smartly over her heart.

"Yes."

He nodded, smiling wryly.

"Figures. The only one to give me the time, and you're a newbie."

"I know who you are," she said, eyebrow raised at his evident surprise.

"Really?" He looked around them before edging closer to the desk.

"Well," he said lowly, "shouldn't you be avoiding me?"

She held his gaze only for a second before looking down again and continuing her shuffling amongst the books littering the desk.

"I doubt they'd let you out if you were a danger…"

She trailed off as she glanced at him, noting the graveness that had settled over his features. A smile, a little bigger than the one previously given, inched its way out.

"Right?"

Aurora Wells wasn't sure of what to expect. Certainly she had known Lash since freshman year, but obviously not well enough if the Royal Pain incident was any indication. So she certainly wasn't sure of him when she entered the library to see him conversing with the school's newest student.

Her first reaction was wariness.

Lydia was a nice girl and it had been her duty to not only escort the new junior around the school, but also welcome her to the community after her move from New York a few weeks prior to the start of school. She was instantly pegged as thoughtful and bookish, as well as almost criminally shy, in part due to her powers.

It was kind of ironic really. Lydia was the daughter of the super hero population's most notorious flirt. Rahda Ardor-Ingram, or Femme, was an empathic manipulator with the ability to read and control emotion. Especially arousal.

Lydia had inherited that gift, though she considered it more of a curse. It was because of her withdrawn nature that she had learned to control her power fairly early in life, which earned her the designation of Hero at school. That, and perhaps the alleged tryst some odd years ago between Couch Boomer and Lydia's mom…

But that was just a rumor.

Still, there were times when some..."allure" slipped out and Lydia found herself the receptor of some unwanted attention.

Aurora frowned, and began to make her way to the central desk, where Lash was smiling amicably at Lydia, who was looking a bit more relaxed than Aurora had seen her yet.

"…like My Chemical Romance?"

"I love them— don't look so incredulous!"

"Alright. Favorite song?"

"Depends on which album. I like 'Demolition Lovers' the best from the first and I can't say about the second. I like them all."

"Well, what song has the greatest play count?"

"That would be 'The Ghost of You'. Couldn't get enough of that when it first came out. That, or 'Helena'."

"I like that one too."

The musical debate was cut short by the clearing of a throat. Two pairs of eyes fixed upon a new presence in the mostly deserted library. Dropping down from his perch on the desk, Lash took in the honey blonde streaked brunette with the intense chocolate eyes, hands on delicate hips, and the officious aura. Oh yeah…

"Lydia. Lash. Hope I'm not interrupting."

Lydia's eyes opened with realization while Lash met the council member's gaze head on.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to keep him," Lydia said, eyes darting to the clock above the entrance.

"It's alright," Aurora assured, giving the new girl a slight yet kindly smile before motioning Lash to a nearby table.

"Lash I'm here as your advisor—"

"You mean parole officer."

"If you prefer. But you're not in jail. If you fail to show improvement, you're not going back to Detention."

Lash couldn't help showing his surprise. He was sure that would be the outcome.

"You'd be expelled."

Oh. Of course.

"No one's going to be breathing down your neck, Lash. You will be monitored, but no one's going to be holding your hand. There'd be no point to redeeming yourself if we dictated your actions."

He nodded and she continued.

"To be honest, I think you'll get the cold shoulder for a while."

She didn't say that the entire student body considered his and the others' betrayal of the school a direct betrayal of themselves, even if they hadn't been present at the dance. She didn't have to say it. He knew.

Their discussion didn't last long. As he gathered his bag to go, he was stopped by Aurora's firm hand on his shoulder.

"Oh, and one more thing," she said lowly, pausing to spare a glance at the farthest row of shelves, where Lydia was busy replacing books.

"Lydia's a nice, shy girl. She's new, which means she only knows you through hearsay and will probably give you more of a chance than others."

"Okay…"

"So don't mess with her."

Seeing his oncoming protest, she raised a hand.

"I'm not saying don't talk to her," she clarified, "I'm sure she'll be a good influence on you. Still, her powers makes her naturally attractive, especially to strangers. So just be careful."

He nodded, wondering about the specifics of the new girl's abilities.

"Okay. That's it."

With that, Aurora Wells made her way to the library doors before stopping and turning, intent on a couple last parting words.

"Lash?"

"Yeah?"

"Welcome back."

* * *

A/N: The end.

Not really. Just the end of chapter 1.Good? Bad? I didn't do this by myself, oh no. I am but a humble scribe. No, you can thank my friends and musesInara Reynolds and Grasshopper. It was the former who prompted me to write this and the latter who listened to our fractured ramblings about it. You can thank them for letting me butchertheir personalities for my sadistic amusement. Hope you enjoy.

P.S. Leave your Mary Sues at the door.

Disclaimer: I don't own Sky High. You don't own Sky High. Let's all be sad.


	2. Chapter 2

**Emergence**

_a Sky High fic_

** Chapter 2: Nostalgia**

**She calls me from the cold**

**Just when I was low, feeling short of stable**

**All that she intends**

**And all she keeps inside, isn't on the label**

_**Fuel, "Shimmer"**_

_**  
**_

"So you make people horny?"

The library was their meeting place. He met Aurora Wells there every other day after school to discuss his progress as he reentered the Sky High community. He also met Lydia there, every day. They both had a free period before lunch and since that first day Lash had never failed to show up to talk to her while she re-shelved books.

Honestly, he was lonely. He'd seen Speed and Penny a few times in school but their schedules were so different. He and Speed had lunch together and he had History with Penny, but it wasn't the same. No longer popular, Lash was forced to take his friends where he could find them. That included Lydia, who had told him about her life at Olympus Academy in upstate New York. They talked about their families, their hobbies, favorite movies, etc. He complained about school work and she complained about being new and out of the loop. She told him about the power vacuum that had resulted from his and his friends' absence, which had lead students like Aurora and Garrett Holden to the top. Speaking of Garrett Holden…

"I don't mean to! It's not even the only emotion I can invoke, it's just one of the easiest. It wouldn't be so bad if guys like Garrett Holden weren't around."

"Guys like him?"

"Oh, you know. Hot, charming, resistant to pleas for the cessation of attention…"

"How do you know he doesn't really just like you?"

"Too unlikely. We're such extremes. And he doesn't know me at all, which makes his interest pretty suspect."

Lash nodded, absently toying with the little blue-haired troll atop her desk. Personally, he didn't consider Holden to be the most sincere admirer. _He_ was a guy after all and knew how those things went. But still, he was curious as to why Lydia sold herself so short. Emotional manipulation aside, she was a very pretty girl.

She was dressed that day in a pair of dark blue jeans and a black zip-up ribbed sweater over a white camisole. With her hair swept up and twisted within a butterfly clip, the slightly curling ends spilling out of the plastic restraint, she looked charmingly academic.

"Anyway," she said with a huff as she hauled the rolling ladder over to the section she wanted, "big guys on campus and me are not mixable. Can you hand me those green books there?"

In the past, Lash had taken a lot of things for granted. His friends, his popularity, his freedom…All of those things were riding on his second chance and what he made of it. So he was grateful for the shy girl in the library. Grateful for her soft voice, grounded personality, and sincere smile.

He had never made friends so close or so fast. At least not female friends. Penny had been the closest, but even then, there was a sense of guardedness. His friendship with Lydia wasn't like that at all and he was loath to overanalyze it. He was just glad for it. So glad that he experienced quite a bit of agitation as he watched her carefully unveil her birthday present from him.

Despite an abundant ignorance regarding herself, Lydia knew other people. Perhaps a by product of her power or a natural perceptiveness, the fact remained that she was completely aware of Lash's rising anxiety as she opened her gift. Releasing an aura of calm as subtly as she could, she gave him a reassuring smile as she discarded the wrapping paper left on the small gift box.

Opening the box, her smile turned into an appreciative grin.

She was addicted to her mp3 player, which was a constant companion during her stints as a hermit while in the library. Lash had heard her complain about on of her ear buds which had recently ceased operation. Figuring that a new pair was hardly enough for a birthday present, he'd added a package of transparent cases as well as a handful of decorative pins, many featuring skulls and crossbones, a trend of his that she had openly admired. They both had the same messenger bag though hers was a dark gray as opposed to his plain black, and they were both fond of stitching patches and attaching pins onto the front of their bags.

"Thank you Lash," she said, giving him a sincere smile.

He felt uncomfortable for a few seconds but nodded anyway.

This was okay.

The day was certainly one for surprises. A card and candy from Aurora. Birthday wishes from her lab partner Layla and Ethan, a library regular. Attempted birthday licks from Zack in the cafeteria. The gifts from Lash. And then there was the matter of the small bouquet of gardenias in her locker...signed—

"Guess who."

Lydia wasn't one for dramatics. But her heart. Just. Stopped.

Placing hesitant hands upon the ones covering her eyes, she took a moment to collect her thoughts.

"'Nara?"

Quickly spinning away from her open locker, Lydia beheld her friend of six years. Same as always. Jet-black hair, copper eyes doing their best to pass for brown. Blue jeans, white tank, dark gray zip-up hoodie with the screen flower on the left hand corner. And a resident of New York, if memory served correctly.

"What are you doing here?"

Lydia didn't know why she whispered/hissed the query or looked about the hall so wildly. Perhaps it was the mischievous gleam in her friend's eyes. She could inspire caution in anyone…

"Long story," the interloper drawled, completely unconcerned. Pulling something from her back pocket, she proceeded to peel a Sky High name tag from its backing. Smacking it down over the right side of her chest, she grinned at her friend's astonished expression.

"What are you waiting for, Birthday Girl? Welcome your new classmate."

"I cannot believe you burned down the gym for me. I can't believe you did that just so you could go here!"

"What can I say? You're worth it."

So this was Sky High. The place that had taken her best friend away from Olympus Academy. Away from New York. Away from her.

Not bad.

That Medulla guy was going to be a bitch to put up with. 'Course, what mad scientist wasn't? The other classes weren't so bad. A little more upbeat than she was used to (Did they really think that the hero would always win?). The coach was an ass. She would handle him easily.

The food was alright as was the company that her friend had introduced her to (though the glowing kid could be a little off-putting). Lydia had done alright for herself in the first two weeks of school. Speaking of which…

"'Lyd, who's that guy and why does he keep lookin' over here?"

Lydia looked up from the book list she was perusing, her eyes scanning the library. Upon finding her target, her eyes immediately lit up.

"Lash, come over here!" Lydia whispered loudly.

Almost reluctantly, the tall, striped boy made his way over.

"Hey," he said lowly, sparing Inara a glance.

"Lash, this is Inara. My best friend. From Olympus, remember?"

Lash did remember. Lydia had talked fondly of the girl, reflecting on her days at her old school. It had been obvious how close they were and how much Lydia had missed her. That wistfulness hadn't been as apparent lately…

"Hey," he greeted noncommittally. She nodded her head in kind.

Silence fell. Lash was close to bolting.

"Sit down Lash," she said quietly, giving him one of the small, friendly smiles he had, somehow, gotten used to. It was almost frightening what two weeks could do to a person.

Without protest, Lash sat.

"So, what are your powers?" he asked the new girl. Or was that _new_ new girl?

"I'm a tactile visionary."

Lash's blank expression sent her eyes heavenward.

"I'm clairvoyant," she said pointedly, "I touch it, I see it. People or things. Mostly the past and strong emotions."

He nodded, understanding. Looking down, a puzzled frown appeared.

"No gloves?"

Looking down at her hands, Inara smiled self-consciously

"Yeah, I'm pretty good at blocking. Don't know how I managed that," she said, giving Lydia a significant look.

"She receives, I project," Lydia explained, "I guess some of my restraint rubbed off."

"Well, I'd curb myself too," the clairvoyant said, "if I made people horny."

Ah, lunch.

As they made their way down the line of food, Inara decided to put her interrogation skills to work.

"So who is this Lash guy?"

"He's just a friend. He's missed a year of school."

"Why?"

"Well, he allied himself with a villain and tried to turn everyone into babies."

"You sure can pick 'em, Lyd. So he's a bad boy, eh? Cool. He is reformed, right? I mean, they wouldn't let him come back otherwise, right?"

"Yes."

"He's cute."

"Hn."

"As is the hot number in black and red."

"Hot. I get it."

Tray laden, Inara followed Lydia past tables and students before coming to the group by the window. The motley crew, as she liked to call them, was made up of six do-gooders. A prodigy, a tree hugger, a firebug, a glowworm, a rodent, and a puddle.

Pick 'em indeed.

To be fair, Inara's best friend was with this particular crowd due to the influence of their latest addition. A time bender, Aurora Wells was the plant chick's lab partner in chemistry. Inara was in that class herself, working alongside the pyro. Not a bad state of affairs on that score.

Knowing Lydia as she did, Inara was sure that her friend was cool with these people. So _she_ was cool with these people. So she would try to be cool too, for her. They weren't that bad, really.

"Is it just me," she asked as she sat down, "or is it Medulla's time of the month?"

"I know, man."

That was Zach, wresting with his milk carton, which was promptly taken by Magenta, who opened it with casual ease.

"Well, he's got that project to present to those International Science guys. Maybe it's not going so hot?" reasoned Layla.

"Still, ten pages on the use of chemical weapons by at least five prominent villains? With foot notes?"

This from Will, who was in Medulla's afternoon class.

"I can help!" Lydia piped up. "I've got tons of data on pheromones and mind control.

"You would," muttered Magenta.

For an instant, Inara was tempted to snap at the shape-shifter. But Lydia had explained that Magenta was one for cynicism, not cheer. And the tongue Lydia stuck out at her belied and menace within the comment.

It was fine. Everything was cool.

The rest of the day went without incident without any sign of Inara after lunch. Lydia still couldn't believe that her friend had really burnt down their old school's gym just for her. At least she remembered to spare the library.

As the school bell shrilly beckoned Sky High's denizens to leave for the day, Lydia made her way through the throng to park herself by Inara's new locker where the former delinquent was packing up for home.

"So what is the verdict?"

"Wha?"

"Hero or Sidekick?"

"Oh that. Hero," Inara said, a thoughtful look on her face as she shut her locker door. "Someone needs to tell the coach that short shorts are not meant for middle aged guys," she said gravely.

" 'Nara."

"He told me to power up and I told him it didn't quite work that way. Then he started to yell at me. I grabbed his pen and recited his underwear choice for the last three days. That shut him up," Inara said, then proceeded to chuckle proudly.

"You shouldn't antagonize the faculty," her friend chastised.

"It's fine. Now he knows not to get on my bad side. Anyway, he told me that I was a hero and scampered away, sans the snarkage. So what are we going to do for your birthday? I was thinking maybe a party this weekend. My house should be ready by then to have guests and stuff over. I made sure to make the hot tub and pool top priority."

"Inara, you just got here. And my birthday, which very few people were even aware of, has already past."

"So."

"So, I'm sure your parents would not appreciate playing hosts to a bunch of strange kids who would have to read the cake to know why they're even there in the first place!"

"Nah, it's cool. They're hitting LA this weekend. Mattress shopping or something," Inara said derisively. "Besides, no one cares about date accuracy any more. Look at all those belated birthday cards they've got now."

"Still, no friends! Present company excluded."

"So it's just your lunch table posse then?"

At her friend's sheepish nod, the clairvoyant rolled her eyes.

"Lydia, isn't that group the same that saved this school and everyone in it?"

"Yeah."

"And doesn't that group include the son of the two most prominent heroes on the West coast?"

"Yeah."

"Well then, guest problem solved!"

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A/N: Look, I updated! See?

Yet another stirring chapter. Please be kind and rewind. And review while you're at

Thank you horsebookwork, .Neon.Love.Monkey., and Inara Reynolds (you shill, you) for your kind words! They get this lazy bum of her...bum? '

Disclaimer: I don't own Sky High. You don't own Sky High. Let's all be sad.


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